While many organisations enter a panic mode as soon as a crisis hits, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) used it as an opportunity to further accelerate its digital transformation. It is a given that Covid-19 has accelerated consumers’ use of digital banking, including those who were less digitally savvy. With a strategic mindset, this major digital shift can result in business benefits, as well as the ultimate safety of all parties involved. The remote means of interaction eliminated any threat of contagion.
In ADCB’s case, things have changed dramatically since the pandemic hit. From the way they do their professional work to attending to daily responsibilities to planning and managing finances, ADCB has been pushed to adopt digital technologies. E-commerce and contactless payments have also increased significantly.
In Egypt, ADCB-E went from being last in the market to being a fierce fast-moving player in the game. With a new release every two weeks on the mobile/internet banking application, it’s an impressive feat that now, ADCB-E is one of the fastest moving banks in Egypt.
In addition, ADCB-E allows its customers to open TDs and CDs in seconds and apply for loans or credit cards. It is also on track to launch bill payments – such as electricity, phone, gas, and internet – that can be seamlessly managed through digital banking.
Truly deserving of industry recognition, ADCB was recently honoured at the Middle East & Africa Retail Banking Innovation Awards 2021 organised by The Digital Banker. Among the awards it received include:
- Winner, Outstanding Digital Acceleration in response to COVID-19
- Winner, Best API Initiative
- Winner, Best Frictionless Credit Evaluation
- Winner, Digital Lending Product of the Year
“Despite the pandemic, ADCB has accelerated the shift to online banking. ADCB-E, in particular, has successfully migrated 58% of its bank transactions to digital and the progress continues. ADCB-E’s initiatives throughout the pandemic has enabled it to be one of the organizations that focus on what truly matters while continuously ensuring its stakeholders’ safety,” said Nirav Patel, Managing Director at The Digital Banker during the awards ceremony.
Building Digital Ecosystems
ADCB’s digital road map identifies Ecosystems as one of the main pillars of growth and transformation, which is a distinct shift away from the traditional ‘Product’ approach many banks take.
In line with this strategy, ADCB identified the Mortgage home buying journey as its first foray into Ecosystems. To do this, the Bank partnered with the region’s leading property portal, Bayut, to launch the ADCB Dream Home Platform that helps prospective home buyers on Bayut get access to ADCB’s instant pre-approvals and other user-friendly tools for a seamless home buying experience using a unified digital platform. The exclusive co-branded platform aims to provide consumers flexibility, speed and simplicity while ensuring security and accuracy of the Pre-approval process.
Innovative Digital Lending Product
Previously, Credit Card Loan (CCL) was available to all ADCB credit card customers primarily through remote channels such as the bank’s contact centre. In Jan 2021, an innovative lending service was launched on ADCB’s mobile banking app offering frictionless, effortless, and ‘instant’ advantages
to its customers. With zero paperwork or human interaction and with just six (6) taps on the app, an ADCB account holder can have ready access to funds in as little as 10 seconds. The loan amount will be credited to their bank accounts instantly.
While it’s seamless for customers, the team at ADCB has put in a lot of effort to make this happen. The deployment of the project was done in two stages:
Backend Automation – A holistic transformation was undertaken wherein back-end processes were automated (straight-through processing) leading to a significant reduction in processing TAT from 1-2 days to as low as 7 seconds. Customers opting to receive disbursed funds to a non-ADCB bank account were able to receive funds through the country’s interbank fund transfer system (UAEFTS).
Frontend Simplification – Coupled with back-end automation, the front-end user journey was enhanced with the availability of the lending facility on the bank’s mobile banking platform. Customers were able to log in on the ADCB Mobile app and have their credit card loans approved in real-time and funds made available to them in less than 10 seconds, in as high as 95% of all disbursements.
Media Contact
| Susy A. TheDigitalBanker [email protected] |
